


Friends Will Be Friends

by Drowned_in_Feels



Category: Stranger Things (TV 2016)
Genre: Canon Lesbian Character, Friendship, Gen, Hair Braiding, Hanging Out, Homophobia, Lesbian Robin (Stranger Things), Male-Female Friendship, POV Robin (Stranger Things), Parent-Child Relationship, Sexuality, Steve Harrington is a Sweetheart, Stranger Things Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-10
Updated: 2019-07-10
Packaged: 2020-06-26 01:37:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,703
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19757932
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Drowned_in_Feels/pseuds/Drowned_in_Feels
Summary: Robin invites Steve over to her place to watch some movies. Her mom assumes they are dating, which greatly upsets Robin, but the night is saved by Steve letting her braid his hair.





	Friends Will Be Friends

**Author's Note:**

> Yes, the title is a Queen song. Enjoy!

Robin's words had left her mouth before she could think them through. “If you want, you can come to my place later.”

They were standing behind the counter at Family Video, their new workplace, on a Friday afternoon. Robin was quite enjoying this job but Steve was completely helpless. He knew practically nothing about movies and watching him fail at his job had stopped being funny a couple of days ago. Now, it was just annoying.

Steve's expression was priceless. “You're inviting me over?”

She pointed her finger at his face. “Don't make me regret this.”

Steve raised his hands in a defensive gesture. “Okay, okay.” He shrugged. “It's gonna be fun!”

“Oh, no, no, no. This is purely educational.” She smiled. “We've been working at this video rental shop for two weeks now and you don't know any of the movies you're renting out. How many times do I have to witness you trying to help a customer find the right movie without even knowing what movie they're looking for? It's infuriating!” She threw her hands in the air.

Steve laughed. “So, you're gonna be my teacher?”

“Yes.” She nodded. “I have all the classics on tape. And I can't have you be so incompetent at work any longer. That just means that I have to do more work.”

He pulled a dramatic, offended face. “Incompetent?”

“Yes, incompetent.” She crossed her arms. “Tonight, after dinner. You're coming over to my place, we're watching some movies and getting you educated.”

“And your parents won't mind?”

Oh, shit. Robin hadn't considered that. “It's just my mom, she won't mind.”

No, she wouldn't mind her having a guest, that wasn't the problem. The problem was that Steve was a guy and her mom had been wanting her to get a boyfriend for quite some time now. Robin hadn't had the heart to tell her yet that wasn't going to happen. At all.

Steve smiled. “Okay. I'm looking forward to it.”

A couple of hours later Robin was sitting at the dinner table with her mom. She had already finished eating and was trying to work herself up to tell her mom that Steve was coming over later.

Meanwhile, her mom was just happily chatting about her day. She was a rather happy woman overall. Always cheery, hardly seen without a smile. Robin loved her mom very much. Sometimes it was just hard to talk with her.

Robin interrupted what her mom was saying. “I'm having a friend come over later.”

Her mom was a little startled due to the interruption but recovered quickly. “Isn't it a bit late to have friends over?”

“It's Friday. I don't work on weekends so it's fine.”

“I suppose it is. And you're old enough to make these decisions yourself anyway.” Robin's mom shrugged. “Will she be staying the night?”

Robin gulped. This was it. “He, actually. And no, he won't be staying the night,

Immediately, her mom's expression changed from slight interest to utter curiosity. “Oh? You've finally found a boyfriend, have you? Oh, that's just lovely! I can't wait to meet him. I bet he's -”

“He's not my boyfriend, mom. Just _a_ friend.” She stressed the article.

“Oh, I'm sure he is”, she said, not sounding like she actually believed it, “but you never know what might develop.” She winked.

Robin felt gross. She knew that sooner or later she would have to tell her mom that she wasn't straight but she didn't feel ready yet. “He works with me at the video shop. We'll just be watching a movie.”

“Lovely! I'll be upstairs then so you can have the TV in the living room to yourselves.” She smiled. She seemed so excited and Robin couldn't bear to break her heart.

“I'll be in my room till he gets here, if that's okay”, Robin said while getting up from the table.

“That's fine, darling. You go and get ready for your guest.” She gave Robin a loving pat but Robin felt like she didn't deserve it.

Upstairs, Robin lay flat on her bed and stared at the ceiling. She was thinking about what was about to happen.

She knew that if her mom were to meet Steve, she would say something about them dating. She wouldn't mean to cause any harm. But Robin knew her mom well enough to know that she would be really inappropriate. She didn't want that to happen.

But she didn't like the alternative either. Technically, she could just go downstairs right now and tell her mom that she was a lesbian. But that would lead to a bigger conversation, if not a fight, and the evening would be ruined. After all, Robin wasn't too optimistic about what her mom thought about gay people.

The best possible version of this evening was her sneaking Steve past her mom without her noticing. But that was very unlikely to happen.

Robin groaned in frustration. Why did all of this have to be so hard? She just wanted to hang out with a friend! She shouldn't have to devise a plan just to hang out with somebody.

She could still just pretend to be straight and date Steve. Her mom would be thrilled. Robin was sure that Steve was a hit with all of the moms. He was handsome and had great hair after all.

But she didn't want to lie to herself, or her mom or Steve. And Steve was such a great friend. She liked him a lot. That surprised her. After knowing him from high school, seeing how much he had changed now was unbelievable.

And he was so supportive. Some guys would have probably called her gross for liking girls but Steve accepted her right away. If only everybody could be like him.

The doorbell rang. That must be Steve. Robin wasn't ready.

“I'll get it!”, she shouted, loud enough for her mom to hear it.

As she barged downstairs, she could hear voices at the front door already. Of course, her mom had been to curious to do what she had asked and opened the door herself. As she jumped down the last few steps, bracing herself for what was about to happen, she could hear Steve's voice at the door. “Hello, I'm Steve and I'm here to see Robin.”

“Ah, yes, come in”, her mom responded, “Robin has told me about you. I'm her mother.”

As Robin rounded the corner, she saw Steve enter her house, looking exactly the same as he did earlier that day at the video shop. He shook her mom's hand. “It's a pleasure to meet you.”

“Hey”, Robin said as she approached him.

“Hi!”, Steve smiled. “Ready to educate me?”

He was obviously joking but Robin's mom still shot her a confused look. Robin explained: “It's a joke, mom.”

Her mom replied: “You didn't tell me you've found yourself a comedian, Robin. And such a handsome one, too!”

She grabbed Steve by his sleeve and pulled him towards the living room. “We'll be in here watching some tapes if you need us.”

“Aww, look at you two. You make such a cute couple”, her mom said as they passed her.

Robin stopped in her tracks, cringing. Why did she have to say that? Why couldn't she just shut up?

Steve's expression turned into confusion. He leaned down just a tiny bit and whispered quietly: “She doesn't know?”

Robin shook her head ever so slightly, wishing for this conversation to just be over.

During their secret exchange, Robin's mom had gone on to talk about how happy she was that the two had got together and that she had been worried that Robin might never find the right man for her.

Steve laughed it off. “We're just friends.”

“Yes, I'm sure. I know what it's like to be _just friends_ ”, she said suggestively.

Steve turned to Robin. “Why don't we go watch that movie now, huh?”

“Good idea!” She pulled him into the living room, said bye to her mom and shut the door.

Steve ran a hand through his hair. “Jesus Christ, what was that!”, he said.

Robin was avoiding eye contact. “I know right”, she mumbled.

He turned towards her. “I guess I understand why you haven't told her that you like -”

“Shhh!” Robin slapped his arm to make him shut up. “She might be listening.”

She was looking at the floor, not at Steve. She felt embarrassed. Of course, she knew that she could trust Steve. He was one of the very few people who knew that she liked girls but the whole situation made her feel so uncomfortable. Her mom was so adamant about her getting a boyfriend that she felt like she could never tell her the truth about her identity. But she cared about her a lot so she wanted to be honest with her. But what if she didn't accept her? What if she kicked her out for it?

Steve gently placed his hands on her shoulders and pulled her out of her thoughts. She looked up at him. “Hey”, he said softly, “it's going to be okay.”

She didn't know what to say. The last couple of weeks had really changed her opinion on Steve. Before, she had only known him as a high school jock but at heart, he was so full of kindness. And without her having to say anything, he knew right away that she was upset.

He pulled her into a hug. She let him. It felt good. Robin hadn't known how much she had needed that hug until now. With her face pressed against his chest, she felt safe. It was good to have a friend like Steve.

Robin pulled out of the hug after little while. She didn't want the situation to go on for too long because she feared that it might get awkward. Well, even more awkward than it already was.

“So, let's watch a movie.” She tried glossing over everything that had just happened.

“Sounds good.” Steve smiled and lead the way over to the TV. Robin was glad that he didn't press the topic. He must have known how uncomfortable she felt.

After selecting a movie and retrieving some snacks from the kitchen, they settled in next to each other on the couch. Robin tried not to dwell on the horrible run-in they had had with her mom.

It was weird to be watching a movie with Steve. She had been so obsessed with him in high school and he had been such a douchebag back then. But then they had worked at Scoops together and then they had been tortured in a secret Russian underground facility together. And then they had to help save the world together. Robin thought that you couldn't really go through that sort of stuff together and not come out as friends.

Steve noticed her looking at him and turned. “What?”

Robin laughed. “Nothing.”

Steve laughed too and didn't ask any further. He turned back to the TV.

A little while passed before he spoke again. He didn't face her. “Hey, can I ask you something?”

Robin hesitated. “Yeah?”

“Am I the first guy you brought over or does your mom always behave like that?” He said it with a smile in his voice in order to lighten up the question. It worked.

“A couple of kids from band came over every once in a while”, she replied, “but we were always in a group.”

“Are you gonna tell her?”

Robin gulped. Steve quickly added: “We don't have to talk about this if you don't want to.”

Robin cleared her throat. “No, it's okay. I suppose sooner or later I'll have to tell her. But at the moment, I'd prefer later over sooner.” She paused. “I'm scared that she won't accept it.”

“I mean, I don't know her as well as you do”, Steve said, “but she seems like a nice person.”

“But you've heard the way she talks. She really wants me to get a boyfriend. And I'm afraid I will break her heart.”

“If she truly loves you, I think she'll accept it. Sure, she might be mad at first but I think she'll be fine with it eventually.”

Robin said nothing. She knew Steve was right. But she didn't even know how she would bring up the topic with her mom.

“Besides”, Steve added, “the sooner you tell her, the better. I mean, what if she finds out on her own? I mean, what if you ever bring a girl home?”

Robin laughed. “It's not that easy to find somebody else like me. Hawkins is quite a small town.”

Steve turned to face her. “So, you've never brought another girl over?”

“Well, as friends, yes. But not the way you think. I've had a couple of sleepovers when I was younger.”

Steve's mind wandered off, his eyes looking past her as if he just thought about something completely new, something more important. “What do girls even do on their sleepovers?”

Robin chuckled. That was what he was concerned about? “Well, you know, just normal sleepover stuff”, she explained, “watching a movie, gossiping about school, the occasional pillow fight, braiding each other's hair -”

Suddenly, Robin had an idea. “Oh my god”, she slapped his shoulder.

“Ow”, Steve rubbed his shoulder in fake pain, “what is it?”

Robin leaned in closer, her face wide with excitement. “We should totally braid your hair.”

“No”, Steve pointed his finger defensively. “Nuh-uh, absolutely not happening. No way.”

But there was no stopping Robin's excitement. She was shaking him by his shoulder. “Yes, oh my god, that's going to be so fun!”

“No, absolutely not.” He tried to get her off of him.

“Yes!” Robin got off the couch and ran over to a table on the other side of the room. There was a box in one of the drawers where they kept all kinds of knick-knacks like rubber bands, lost board game pieces and, most importantly, hair ties.

Robin returned to the couch with her findings. “Come on, it's going to be fun!”

Steve had clasped his hands over his hair to protect it from Robin. “Not for me!”

“Please”, Robin begged as she climbed back onto the couch.

Steve moved away from her towards the end of the couch but Robin was relentless. “Please, please, please”, she repeated.

Steve had reached the end of the couch and Robin was starting to pry off his fingers from his precious mane. “Fine!”, he finally gave in.

“Yayy!”, Robin celebrated as Steve took off his hands from his head.

“But,” Steve said and pointed a finger at her face to emphasise his words. His voice was almost threatening. “nobody can _ever_ know about this!”

Robin smiled. “Okay. Now, sit in front of me so I can get to work.”

Steve pouted but obliged. Robin ran her fingers through his hair. “Good god, you do really have amazing hair.”

Steve snorted. “Trust me, you're not the first one to tell me.”

Robin rolled her eyes behind his back. Always so arrogant. “What's your secret?”

“I'm not telling you that.”

Robin sighed. She didn't continue to annoy him about it. He did already give in and let her braid his hair, she shouldn't be asking too much of him.

She started by combing through his hair with her fingers and dividing it into smaller sections, which would be easier to braid individually. They continued watching the movie while she worked. Every now and then, Steve cracked a joke about what was happening on screen and Robin laughed.

At the end of the night, they said goodbye at the door. Steve's hair had successfully been sectioned into ten small braids and he looked absolutely adorable.

“You should keep it like that”, Robin joked.

Steve rolled his eyes. “I won't. And remember, not a word to anyone about this.”

“Yeah, yeah.” She gave him a quick hug to say goodbye. “And drive safe.”

“Yeah, I will.” And with that, he got into his car. Robin watched him from the door. He checked his hair in his rearview mirror before starting the engine. She could see him smile as he drove off.

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! Please leave some feedback. <3


End file.
